Blake Lively is one famous actress who's been open about her love of cheesy and comforting
Kraft Macaroni and Cheese. Drew Barrymore is also a big fan. But you definitely don't
need to be a big star to enjoy this affordable and familiar treat. It's a convenient option
for so many people from all walks of life, from cash-strapped college students to busy
professionals and beyond. While Kraft Macaroni and Cheese has its critics, the Kraft company
sells a million boxes of the stuff each and every day. So together, let’s uncover the
top 10 untold truths of Kraft Macaroni and Cheese.
Kraft Mac and Cheese has Been Around Since 1937
This boxed dinner doubles as a lunch or even a snack, and it's been around since 1937.
Before it was available for sale, processed cheese had to be invented. Cheese is processed
with salts that emulsify and this allows the cheese to stay fresh for much longer. Once
the processing of cheese was possible, a man named James Lewis Kraft, who lived in Chicago,
was awarded a patent for his own clever cheese processing method. This happened in 1916.
After he got the patent, he launched a cheese enterprise. Kraft wanted to reduce waste because
cheddar cheese of that era had an extremely short shelf life. His new process helped people
to enjoy cheddar taste, without the fast spoilage problem. While the Great Depression was happening,
Kraft heard about a salesman who was traveling from door to door, selling macaroni and a
package of Kraft powdered cheese mix. Kraft contacted the salesman, did a deal and started
marketing the product as Kraft Macaroni and Cheese. In 1937, the first Kraft mac and cheese
product was available commercially, in America, as well as Canada. One fun fact is that James
Lewis Kraft was born in Ontario, Canada. When it was introduced, this product featured a
very long shelf life. It would remain edible and unspoiled for a full ten months. Since
many people didn't own fridges back then, the long shelf life of the macaroni and cheese
product was very appealing.
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The Kraft Macaroni and Cheese Cheese Packet Used To Be Attached To The Box With An Elastic
Band
It's always fascinating to delve into the background of a really good idea. With Kraft
Macaroni and Cheese, the idea needed a little tweaking. At first, a St. Louis salesman went
from door to door, selling the dried pasta, along with a Kraft powdered cheese sauce mix
that was attached to the pasta box with a simple rubber band. He was so close to the
Kraft Mac and Cheese concept that we know and love today, but needed to evolve his idea
just a little. The founder of the Kraft Macaroni and Cheese company connected with the salesman
and then they tweaked the concept. This was when it was decided that the cheese sauce
packet should go inside the box. This simple change marked the inception of one of the
world's most beloved packaged food products. Unfortunately, this salesman doesn't get the
same acclaim that James Lewis Kraft does, but his clever methods of packaging and selling
pasta and cheese sauce mix are worthy of attention and praise. Once the sauce packet was inside
of the box, the perfect product was born. It was compact, convenient and simple to use.
It filled a need in the marketplace. At the time, it was very innovative.
Kraft Mac and Cheese Was Very Popular During World War II
Kraft is a company that's produced some beloved products, including Kraft Macaroni and Cheese
and Velveeta Cheese. During World War II, the popularity of Kraft's product line skyrocketed.
Kraft Mac and Cheese was the most popular of them all, with fifty million boxes sold.
During the war, food ration stamps were given out and Americans were able to grab a couple
of boxes of Kraft Mac and Cheese with single ration stamps. They got filling food without
needing to use more than one stamp. The desire to get more satisfying food for fewer ration
stamps fueled the incredible popularity of Kraft Mac and Cheese during wartime. Today,
Kraft Macaroni and Cheese is still world-renowned for its affordability. It's a packaged food
product that isn't out of reach to most people. It's not an elitist product. It's for the
masses and people from many different income levels enjoy it, although those with the least
money may appreciate it the most because it is just so reasonably-priced.
Canadians Love Kraft Macaroni and Cheese The Most
Residents of the Great White North are really into Kraft Macaroni and Cheese or as it’s
better known, Kraft Dinner or KD. It's an adored staple in Canadian households. In Canada,
1.7 million boxes of the stuff are sold every week, out of seven million boxes sold globally
per week. Each Canadian consumes, on average, 3.2 boxes of KD annually. This means that
Canadians consume fifty-five percent more Kraft Macaroni and Cheese than their USA counterparts.
So, why is the product so popular in Canada? Well, it might be because Kraft is such a
trusted company there. Kraft produces lots of food products that Canadians love and believe
in. For example, Canadians are big fans of Kraft Peanut Butter, which features two cute
teddy bears on every plastic jar. Cracker Barrel Cheese also comes from Kraft and it's
a Canadian favorite. Plus, Kraft Mac and Cheese served hot, and hot food is comforting food
during frosty Canadian winters. Overall, the popularity of Kraft Mac and Cheese in Canada
is really a bit of a mystery. It's a Canadian standard, like Poutine, which is made from
cheese curds, gravy, and French Fries. Canadians clearly like their comfort food cheesy and
KD does deliver tons of creamy, cheesy taste.
Kraft Macaroni and Cheese Contains Phthalates
Processed cheese is more likely to contain phthalates than non-processed cheese. And
Kraft Macaroni and Cheese contains processed cheese and always has. A New York Times story
from 2017 referenced a study that found phthalates in a variety of brand-name macaroni and cheese
products, including Kraft Mac and Cheese. Some people are worried about phthalates because
they may have a negative impact on androgen hormones, including testosterone, and because
there might be a connection between birth defects in baby boys and phthalates. Another
issue is the fact that phthalates have been linked with behavioral and learning problems
in older kids. However, all of the research on phthalates thus far have been done on animals,
not humans - plus, the phthalate we were most concerned about, DEHP is no longer in wide
use. The FDA hasn't banned them yet, and may never ban them.
22 Different Varieties of Kraft Macaroni and Cheese Are Available
If you want Kraft Mac and Cheese in Original Flavor, it's easy to find, but you definitely
have other options. Kraft Macaroni and Cheese comes in a whopping twenty-two varieties,
so there's something to suit every macaroni and cheese fan's taste buds. Go for White
Cheddar and Bacon, Four Cheese, or Cheddar Broccoli Cheese. This just scratches the surface.
This company keeps evolving by offering customers new taste formulations and new pasta shape
options. The company currently has three categories of Kraft Mac and Cheese. The categories are
Blue Box, Microwaveable and Deluxe. By branching out and offering new flavors and textures,
the team at Kraft give customers the power to experiment and find the Kraft Mac and Cheese
formulas that they love the most. Cartoon-shaped noodles, such as Spongebob Squarepants-shaped
macaroni, have also appeared on store shelves, and this type of Kraft Mac and Cheese is so
much fun for kids.
Kraft Macaroni and Cheese Has 1200 Calories in a Box
Kraft Mac and Cheese has four hundred calories per serving and three servings per box. If
you prepare the mac and cheese as directed, with lower-fat milk and margarine, and then
eat the whole box of it, you'll take in twelve hundred calories. A typical supper has less
calories than that, so it's a high-calorie choice for a main meal. When you eat a single
serving, you'll take in less calories than a typical supper. If you struggle with portion
control, share your box of Kraft Macaroni and Cheese with a child, partner or friend.
If you're going to eat the whole box by yourself, balance out the indulgence by eating some
lighter, healthier meals for the other parts of your day. Kraft Macaroni and Cheese is
meant to be filling and have calories. It was designed to help people who didn't have
a lot of money to feel satisfied. In terms of nutrition, Kraft Macaroni and Cheese contains
protein, which is fuel for muscles. When you eat a serving of Kraft Macaroni and Cheese,
you'll access ten protein grams, which is thirteen percent of the recommended daily
amount of protein. Each serving of Kraft Macaroni and Cheese contains 8.5 grams of fat. However,
Kraft Macaroni and Cheese contains quite a bit of sodium. The sodium count for a serving
of Kraft Mac and Cheese is 710 milligrams. That's thirty percent of the recommended daily
allotment for sodium. Kraft Macaroni and Cheese does contain some valuable nutrients,
including Vitamin A, calcium and iron. Kraft Macaroni and Cheese is great, but it should
be part of a varied diet. It shouldn't be a main meal choice all of the time. When eaten
in moderation, it offers nutritional value and calories. It's also filling enough to
make people feel satisfied, even though it's such a cheap meal option. One Canadian teacher
received a complaint from Kraft because he kept mentioning Kraft Macaroni and Cheese
during a healthy eating class. He also named his class, Kick the KD, and then had to change
the name, because the name is trademarked. He did stop mentioning the product in class,
in addition to changing the title, because he didn't want legal hassles from Kraft Canada.
Breaking records with Kraft Macaroni and Cheese
Ever since the rise in popularity of Kraft Mac and cheese, people have probably been
trying to outdo each other in seeing how fast one could polish off a whole box. No more
so than now, in the internet age, has the gauntlet been thrown down and challenges met
when it comes to breaking Kraft Mac and Cheese speed eating records. How fast could you wolf
down an entire box of Kraft Mac and Cheese? Well, the current record stands at 30.50 seconds.
This sounds impossible, but it was done, according to Recordsetter.com. This type of speed eating
isn't healthy. It's actually really unsafe, so don't try this at home. Savor your macaroni
and cheese slowly. Some contests are about quantity, versus speed. For example, there
are Kraft Mac and Cheese challenges out there online that feature people who sit down to
eat four or five boxes of the stuff in single sittings. That's a crazy amount of Kraft Mac
and Cheese to eat in one sitting. No matter how much you love this classic American mac
and cheese product, you shouldn't overdo it like that. Binge-eating Kraft Macaroni and
Cheese is probably going to leave you feeling sick and bloated. Kraft Mac and Cheese eating
contests aren't sponsored by Kraft.
Bacon Is a Popular Kraft Macaroni and Cheese Add-On
We live in a world where people love putting their meals on Instagram or recording themselves
while they prepare food. We all get hungry, so interest in food is universal. When it
comes to Kraft Mac and Cheese, people love to modify the recipe, by personalizing it
with their own add-ons. The most popular add-on for Kraft Mac and Cheese is bacon. A little
bacon adds a ton of taste and also ups the protein gram count. Bacon isn't the healthiest
protein around, but substituting turkey bacon, which is better for you, will be a great way
to get a taste that's very similar. Kraft Macaroni and Cheese is a savory food and it's
easy to pump up its taste and texture with chopped veggies, condiments, and spices. People
at Reddit have weighed in on their fave add-ons. Aside from bacon, they love adding French
Fries to their Kraft Mac and Cheese. I guess this gives a poutine-like effect because Kraft
Mac and Cheese has such a cheesy taste. Another gourmet twist on classic Kraft Mac and Cheese
is the addition of sausage and apples. Some people prefer to keep it simple by boosting
the heat level of Kraft Mac and Cheese by adding hot pepper sauce or cayenne pepper.
Sliced or chopped jalapenos serve the same purpose and also add a bit of crunch. The
next time you whip up a batch of Kraft Macaroni and Cheese, take a look around your kitchen.
See what ingredients you have on hand which may turn your Kraft Macaroni and Cheese into
a gourmet meal.
Customers Didn't Notice Kraft Macaroni and Cheese Ingredient Changes in 2016
Kraft Mac and Cheese may taste much the same as it always has, but the ingredients in boxes
of Kraft Macaroni and Cheese changed during 2016. The truth is that hardly anyone noticed.
Business kept booming as usual. The distinctive blue boxes continued to fly off of store shelves.
Kraft was trying to make its macaroni and cheese healthier. It took away some bad stuff,
including dyes, preservatives, and artificial flavors. This is good news for Kraft Mac and
Cheese fans. The team at Kraft Mac and Cheese didn't advertise the changes. They initiated
the changes and then watched and waited. People didn't really realize that their Kraft Mac
and Cheese was being colored with spices, rather than Yellow Number Five dye. The company
kept selling the same amount of Kraft Mac and Cheese as it had beforehand. This next-gen
Kraft Macaroni and Cheese was better for customers. To keep the garish neon effect of the cheese
mix, the company subbed its usual yellow dye for annatto, turmeric, and paprika. Kraft
knows that a lot of customers these days want food that is more natural. They’re listening
to their customers and making changes. Kraft Macaroni and Cheese is a part of popular culture
and probably always will be, even if it changes a bit over the decades.
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